In partnership with Kizakura Sake Brewery, they brew their own Junmai sake using Kyoto's famous "Fushimizu" water.

Higashiyama Sake Brewery was originally a sake brewery that had been in operation for generations in Sakyo Ward, Kyoto. After being reorganized as a corporation in 1945, the brewery moved several times before finally settling in its current location in Shioyacho, Fushimi Ward in 1984.

Since 1967, the company has partnered with Kizakura Sake Brewery, a major sake brewery in Fushimi. Using Kyoto's famous "Fushimizu," which springs from the same water vein as the "Okasumi Spring of Fushimi" at Gokonomiya Shrine, which was selected as the first of Japan's 1 famous springs, the company specializes in brewing specially designated sake and carefully selected pure rice sake.

Aiming to create a pure rice sake that pursues the original flavor of sake, the brewery has inherited the brewing techniques that respect the history and traditions of sake brewing handed down by its master brewers, and with the high technical skills that have been cultivated over generations, the brewery is now highly regarded within the Kizakura Group as a "masterpiece of art."

Exploring the differences rice ingredients can make

"Fushimizu" is a medium-hard water with a good balance of potassium and calcium, and has the power to ferment sake even at low temperatures. This water is the key to sake brewing, and the master brewers work diligently to create sake with a deep flavor.

Their representative brand, "Kunteki," is made using 100% "specially grown Yamada Nishiki rice" from Tanaka Farm in Tottori Prefecture, and is a masterpiece that competes with the natural flavor of rice. The kanji "Kun" (earth) and "Nagaru" (growing) combine to create the character, "Kun," which means "drops from the earth," and is intended to convey the idea of ​​the earth causing all things to grow, and "Kunteki" was named as "drops from the earth." This fine sake won a gold medal at the National New Sake Tasting Competition and an excellence award at the Osaka Regional Taxation Bureau Sake Tasting Competition.

In addition, "Rosanjin" is made using 100% of the rare sake rice "Iwai" from Kyoto, and the taste highlights the brewer's technique and individuality, retaining the deliciousness of fermentation and aging. Both "Kunteki" and "Rosanjin" use rice that has been polished to 60%, pursuing the difference in taste.

Both types are gently filtered to retain the original flavor of the sake. The resulting product is a slightly golden yellow color with a rich flavor and aroma that will satisfy the palate.

A rare example of inheriting the techniques and experience of the Nanbu Toji in Fushimi

Higashiyama Sake Brewery maintains its artisanal spirit by not offering tours or sales at the brewery. Unusually for Fushimi, they have inherited the techniques and experience of Iwate Prefecture's "Nambu Toji" (master brewer), and they brew sake slowly and carefully. They will continue to brew the ultimate sake using their cultivated techniques in a way that only they can do.